North Hastings IT celebrates one year anniversary

By Michael Riley

Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

North Hastings IT celebrated its one-year anniversary on Dec. 23. Located at 10 Hastings Street North, Unit 1, owner Martin Budarick feels like the anniversary was part of an accomplishment, like he got through a major hurdle of seeing how a year of business in Bancroft goes. He's incredibly thankful to the community for their support over the past 12 months and looks forward to many more years in business.

Budarick tells The Bancroft Times that some businesses come and go unfortunately but, in his case, and in the case of Tracey McGibbon of McG's Cakes on Main (whose cupcakes were at North Hastings IT's anniversary celebration), the community really showed their love and support for their businesses.

“So, once I got my feet under me after a couple of months, I was able to get some of the needed stuff like printer ink and charging cables. People were like, this is a place that we can go, a place we can rely on. Once I got settled, you can definitely feel how there was that support,” he says.

Budarick, who has many years' experience in the IT field at both McCaskie's TV and Stereo (which closed down a year ago) and at North Hastings Public Library, says the best part of being in business is being a part of the community and helping them with their needs and being able to support them in little ways.

“Being able to support the community in ways, whether its in sales or support. Helping seniors with their technology problems and a lot of scams that are going on. I have a lot of seniors coming in saying ‘I don't understand this, it's flashing on my computer. Should I call them?' And it's like, no don't call them. That's the best part of supporting my community, either through sales or actual support,” he says.

The most challenging part of the past year, according to Budarick, is getting his name out there and letting people know where he is.

“That's why I put so much energy into Facebook but I need to take that next step into advertising because I know a lot of our community takes their advertising from the radio or word print and not everyone is on Facebook. So that's been the challenging part, just getting my name out there and letting people know that there is a local place they can get help for their IT needs,” he says.

Budarick says the most sought after products are printer ink and charging cables. He says he just recently got a copier for copying, scanning and faxing during business hours (Monday to Friday 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturday 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.) and he also offers movie rentals.

“We'll see if that takes off because I know entertainment is hard to come by in town, we don't have a lot of things to do. When I was working for the library, I noticed a lot of community members using the library movie rentals,” he says.

Budarick says he tries to keep his stock updated and current for any needs the community has and keeping things in stock what they ask for, like cell boosters, cell phone cases, photo developing and gift cards.

“So, trying to listen to the community, what they need and seeing how I can facilitate that in any way, shape or form,” he says.

In addition to the products they offer for sale they also provide a variety of services, including transferring information from cell phones and tablets to other cell phones and tablets, providing support to frequent problems clients face, and helping them understand what accessories are available and how to use them. They also help clean computers, help them stay updated and ensure there are no dangerous or suspicious programs or software on them. As well as in-store services, they also offer private in-home consultations and service.

Budarick says he's just very thankful to the community for supporting his business through making purchases or through word-of-mouth advertising.

“In any way, shape or form they've supported me, I want to thank them for allowing me to be here for a year. Businesses in small towns are based on what the community wants and not what the person in business wants. You can have a business dream of what you want to run in Bancroft but if the community doesn't see it as a need, it won't get the support. So, I'm just thankful that the community has supported me and allowed me to be here to promote services the community needs,” he says.

Budarick told The Bancroft Times on Jan. 4 that he thought the one-year anniversary celebration on Dec. 23 went pretty well in spite of the snow storm later that day.

“I think it was a good reaction. As many people came out as they could. But it was good overall,” he says. “Some cupcakes got eaten and I was able to see some people and reflect on the one-year anniversary.”